Can Dogs Eat Yogurt?

Yogurt, like cottage cheese, can make a good addition to a dog’s diet. Anyone who barges can deduct the amount of meat. However, the total daily ration should not exceed five percent.

The Essentials in Brief

• The ready-made feed can be pepped up with natural yogurt;
• Like many other dairy products, yogurt has added value for the dog;
• Probiotics contained in yogurt, i.e. lactic acid bacteria, have a positive effect on digestion and can even help with diarrhea.

Can Dogs Be Lactose Intolerant?

Many people now suffer from lactose intolerance. Is that the same with dogs? Unfortunately, there is no general answer to this. Many dogs are not lactose intolerant, but it can happen in dogs. Yogurt and other dairy products should therefore be fed in small portions. It should first be tested with a spoon of natural yogurt whether the dog reacts with diarrhea. If he tolerates the yogurt well, the amount can be increased slowly. Lactose tolerance can decrease as dogs get older. The dog produces the enzyme lactase. This enzyme can break down lactose. After the puppy age, however, the production of the enzyme decreases. If the dog receives dairy products on a regular basis, the process can be slowed down. But he cannot be stopped completely. In most dogs, intolerance is only noticeable at a very old age and often not at all.

How Many Yogurts Can Dogs Eat?

Yogurt contains lactic acid bacteria that convert the lactose contained in it into lactic acid, which significantly reduces the lactose content. The yogurt can help the dog in the best way, in case of illness or convalescence. Mixed with honey, it can be fed to the dog in between to strengthen it. If the dog does not like his food, mixed with yogurt can stimulate the appetite. Most dogs like the sourest taste very much. If you are afraid that your dog will not tolerate the yogurt, you can give it lactose-free. To test how the dog tolerates the yogurt, you should start with a spoon. The yogurt portion can comprise up to five percent of the total feed ration. But it shouldn’t rise above that. Many dogs also love to be able to lick the yogurt cup after a person has eaten a yogurt. For some dogs, yogurt with a little honey and a banana is a great snack.

What Should Be Considered When Feeding Yogurt?

• Dogs should only be given pure natural yogurt. Sugar and fructose should not be included.
• If you are worried that your dog will not tolerate the yogurt so well, you can fall back on lactose-free variants.
• The daily ration of five percent of the total amount of feed should not be exceeded.
• Yogurt is healthy. It contains many vitamins as well as calcium, potassium, magnesium, and iodine. The ingredients have a positive effect on muscle functions and bone growth and can restore damaged intestinal flora.

Our Tip

Yogurt can help especially if dogs have suffered from a gastrointestinal infection. The intestinal flora is rebuilt by the lactic acid bacteria. The yogurt is easy to digest and has few calories in the low-fat variants. It is particularly important that the dog only gets natural yogurt. Yogurt mixes usually contain a lot of sugar, which is not good for the dog. However, some fruit can be mixed into the yogurt for the dog. But only varieties that the dog is really allowed to get and not in large quantities. The fat content in yogurt should only be 3.5 percent for dogs of normal weight. Dogs that do not have weight problems are allowed to get a spoonful of Greek yogurt every now and then.